About the Norwegian Board of Appeal for Industrial Property Rights

The Norwegian Board of Appeal for Industrial Property Rights is an independent, court-like, body under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries. The Board of Appeal re-examines and re-evaluates appeals on decisions from the Norwegian Industrial Property Office within patent, trademark and design rights, as well as decisions in relation to company names, the act of precious metals, and the regulations on hallmarks. Additionally the Board of Appeal re-examines and makes decisions on some of the decisions issued by the Plant Variety Board.

In the independent character of the Board of Appeal lies that no one may instruct the Board – not the Ministry of Trade and Industry, nor the Industrial Property Office.

The decisions from the Board of Appeal are available here on this webpage, on the Industrial Property Office’s web page, on Lovdata and on Darts-IP. Additionally new decisions are notified via Twitter/Klagenemnda.

The Board of Appeal does, like separate courts, try matters which demand exceptional expert knowledge within the field of patent, design and trademark law. The Board of Appeal hence consists of a legally trained director and deputy director who both fulfill the requirements requested of a judge. Their function is to act as first-voting judges in matters brought before the Board of Appeal. Additionally the Board of Appeal consists of board members with legal and technical knowledge, the last mentioned within the areas chemistry, electrical engineering, construction engineering, and mechanical engineering. Further, the board consists of people with commercial knowledge, with knowledge of plant breeding and peopled skilled in the art of crafts (design). The general office consists of two assistants.

A particular challenge for the Board is to keep track of and stay informed of the fast international developments through EPO and OHIM as well as the European Court of Justice (ECJ).

The Board of Appeal is also, as indicated, comprised of a total of 23 board members. A committee of three, one always being the director or deputy director, form the decision making body in a matter brought before the Board of Appeal. The 20 board members are appointed for 3 years at a time and may be reappointed.

The Board of Appeal’s task of re-examining the Industrial Property Office’s decisions also means that the Board of Appeal through the decisions is to create and develope the case law on the national level and to create predictability and consistency for businesses and consumers. The Supreme Court (Høyesterett) is the highest authority in relation to the creation and development of case law but it seldom has the chance to rule on intellectual property matters as these are rarely brought before the Supreme Court.

The Board of Appeal’s activity is first and foremost regulated by the Act of the Industrial Property Office and the Board of Appeal for Industrial Property (Patentstyrelova) and the regulations thereto. Other legal acts relevant to the activities of the Board of Appeal can be found in the menu under “regelverk”.

The course of the appeal

A decision made by the Industrial Property Office may be appealed to the Board of Appeal for Industrial Property Rights.

The deadline for filing the appeal is evident from the decision issued by the Industrial Property Office but is set to two months from when the decision was sent. This deadline is non-extendable.

The appeal is to be filed with the same authority which has issued the decision which is now being appealed, i.e. the Industrial Property Office. The Industrial Property Office will issue an invoice for the appeal fee and is given a chance to reverse their decision.

The appeal will thereafter be handled by the Board of Appeal.

The committee of 3 responsible for making a decision is formed, and will comprise of the director or the deputy director and a selection of two of the 23 board members depending on the type of matter.

The director or deputy director will write the decision with input from the rest of the committee and the committee will meet to vote on the matter.

When the decision is made by the Board of Appeal it is sent to the Industrial Property Office which will change the status of the matter in their database and announce registration or refusal in the relevant gazette.

Exchange of pleadings

Both sides will as a general rule have the ability to exchange two pleadings. Further pleadings should be agreed upon specifically for each individual matter with the Board of Appeal and will not be taken into account without a specific consent by the Board.

The parties shall, upon request by the Board of Appeal, file closing arguments where they account for their submissions and the legal grounds.

The proceedings before the Board of Appeal are as a rule based on written arguments in Norwegian. However, the Board of Appeal will, if it sees fit, request oral proceedings. The parties themselves may also request oral proceedings where after the Board of Appeal will decide whether or not this is suitable for the purpose.

The decision

The decision is made by a committee of 3 people. If the appeal represents exceptional significance or difficulty a committee consisting of 5 will rule on the matter.

When the appeal is determined it is sent to the parties and the Industrial Property Office for publication in their database and the relevant gazette.

If either of the parties disagrees with the Board’s decision, an appeal to the City Court of Oslo may be filed within 2 months counted from the date from when the decision was sent from the Board.

Administrative appeal fees

The fees for filing an appeal with the Board of Appeal shall be paid to the Board of Appeal.

The payment must be received before a matter will be considered by the Board of Appeal.

The Board of Appeal sets a deadline for payment of the fee.

Oral proceedings before the board of the appeal

The Board of Appeal will, if it sees fit, request oral proceedings. The parties themselves may also request oral proceedings where after the Board of Appeal will decide whether or not this is suitable for the purpose.

Review by a court of law

If the decision is not in favor of the applicant, the holder of a registration or the rights holder, it may be appealed to a court of law. A law suit must be brought before a court of law within 2 months counted from the date the decision was sent from the Industrial Property Office. These deadlines are definite and are not subject to extension.